Titan: Facts About Saturn's Largest Moon Titan: Facts About Saturn's Largest Moon By Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com Contributor | June 30, 2016 04:56pm ET MORE This view shows a close up of toward the south polar region of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, and show a depression within the moon's orange and blue haze layers near the south pole. NASA’s Cassini spacecraft snapped the image on Sept. 11, 2011 and it was released on Dec. 22. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute Titan is Saturn's largest moon and the second largest in the solar system (after Ganymede of Jupiter). It is the only moon in the solar system with clouds and a dense, planet-like atmosphere. Scientists believe that conditions on Titan are similar to Earth's early years (the main difference is that, because it is closer to the sun, Earth has always been warmer).

According to NASA , "In many respects, Saturn's largest moon, Titan, is one of the most Earth-like worlds we have found to date." Titan stats Diameter: 3,200 miles (5,150 kilometers), about half the size of Earth and almost as large as Mars Surface temperature: minus 290 Fahrenheit (minus 179 degrees Celsius), which makes water as hard as rocks and allows methane to be found in its liquid form Surface pressure: Slightly higher than Earth's pressure. Earth's pressure at sea level is 1 bar while Titan's is 1.6 bars. Orbital period: 15,945 days NASA's Cassini spacecraft peers through the murk of Titan's thick atmosphere in this view, taken with Cassini's narrow-angle camera on Sept. 25, 2008. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Other Titan facts Titan's name comes from Greek mythology. The Titans were elder gods who ruled the universe before the Olympians came to power, according to the Theoi Project website. The moon was discovered by Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens in 1655.

The Huygens lander probe sent to the moon aboard NASA's Cassini spacecraft by the European Space Agency is named in his honor. Huygens was the first human-built object to land on Titan's surface. [ Amazing Photos of Titan ] Titan's diameter is 50 percent larger than that of Earth's moon . Titan is larger than the planet Mercury but is half the mass of the planet. Titan's mass is composed mainly of water in the form of ice and rocky material. Titan has no magnetic field. Atmosphere of Titan Titan is surrounded by an orange haze that kept its surface a mystery for Earth's scientists until the arrival of the Cassini mission. Titan's atmosphere extends about 370 miles high (about 600 kilometers), which makes it a lot higher than Earth's atmosphere. Because the atmosphere is so high, Titan was thought to be the largest moon in the solar system for a long time. It wasn't until 1980 that Voyager was close enough to discover it was actually smaller than Ganymede. Titan's atmosphere is active and complex , and it is mainly composed of nitrogen (95 percent) and methane (5 percent).

Titan also has a presence of organic molecules that contain carbon and hydrogen, and that often include oxygen and other elements similar to what is found in Earth's atmosphere and that are essential for life. There is an unsolved mystery surrounding Titan's atmosphere: Because methane is broken down by sunlight, scientists believe there is another source that replenishes what is lost. One potential source of methane is volcanic activity, but this has yet to be confirmed. Titan's atmosphere may escape to space in a similar way that Earth's atmosphere does . The Cassini spacecraft has detected polar winds that draw methane and nitrogen (charged with interactions with light) out along Saturn's magnetic field and out of the atmosphere. A similar process is believed to happen on Earth with our own magnetic field. Magic Island There is an abundance of methane lakes , which are mainly concentrated near its southern pole. In 2014, scientists found a transient feature they playfully referred to as " Magic Island ." It's possible that nitrogen bubbles formed in Titan's oceans sit on the surface for a period of time, creating a temporary island that eventually dissipates.

"What I think is really special about Titan is that it has liquid methane and ethane lakes and seas, making it the only other world in the solar system that has stable liquids on its surfaces," Jason Hofgartner, a planetary scientist at Cornell University, told Space.com in 2014. "It not only has lakes and seas, but also rivers and even rain. It has what we call a hydrological cycle, and we can study it as an analog to Earth's hydrological cycle — and it's the only other place we know of where we can do that." Large areas of Titan's surface are covered with sand dunes made of hydrocarbon. Dunes on Titan may resemble the Namibian desert in Africa. Because methane exists as a liquid on Titan, it also evaporates and forms clouds, which occasionally causes methane rain . Clouds of methane ice and cyanide gas float over the moon's surface. "Titan continues to amaze with natural processes similar to those on the Earth, yet involving materials different from our familiar water," Cassini deputy project scientist Scott Edgington, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said in a statement .

Sunlight is quite dim on Titan, and climate is driven mostly by changes in the amount of light that accompanies the seasons. Moons of Saturn – Saturn Moon Names, Features & Size – PlanetFacts.org The Moon Moons of Saturn There are 62 moons orbiting Saturn. The moons of Saturn vary not only in size but also in composition and shape. The largest of the moons of Saturn is the aptly named Titan, more than 5,000 km across and is bigger than Mercury. There are 7 major moons of Saturn and the rest are grouped based on the mythology from which it is taken. Most of the minor moons of Saturn are less than 1 km across and are icy celestial bodies that closely resemble planetary rings. Major Moons of Saturn Titan – The largest of Saturn’s numerous natural satellites measuring 5,150 km across. The surface of Titan is mostly rocky materials and ice and its atmosphere is mostly composed of nitrogen, which could create a climate similar to that of ancient Earth. It is believed that Titan’s environment can nurture extraterrestrial microorganisms. Rhea – Named after the mother of the Olympian gods in Greek Mythology.

It is the second largest moon of Saturn measuring 1,530 km across and is the 9th largest natural satellite in the solar system Iapetus – With a diameter of 1,470 km, it is the 3rd largest moon of Saturn. It was discovered by Giovanni Cassini in 1671. It has a distinct feature of having a bright and dark hemisphere. Dione – The 4th largest moon of Saturn named after a vague character in Greek Mythology. It measures 1,122 km in diameter and is the 15th largest moon in the solar System. Despite its size, its mass exceeds all the moons smaller than itself combined. Thetys – Discovered by Giovanni Cassini in 1684, this moon named after a titan in the Greek Mythology has a 1,070 km diameter. Like Dione and Rhea, the surface of Thetys is mostly icy. Enceladus – Discovered by William Herschel in 1789, it has a diameter of 500 kilometers. It has a very reflective surface and it reflects most of the sunlight that hits its surface.

Mimas – Also discovered by William Herschel in 1789. It has a 400 km diameter and has low density that led scientists to believe it is mostly made of ice with very little percentage of rocks. Moons of Saturn Emma Nation Thanks for the scaling. This is the first I’ve been able to picture the correct distance and size of the earth-moon system — very helpful in imagining the moon’s orbit intersecting with the earth’s orbital plane. Thanks for the music not being electronic and overbusy, and for doing everything yourself. Great job on getting the transit of Jupiter’s moon! Thanks for the whole project, well done! charlotte I’m researching Rhea for my science project. Maybe you could add a little more about its atmosphere and wind speeds. Lia it is great even in heaven we cant see such a beauty AWESOME! Steve Edmonds What a great Video. I am so glad you guys have taken the time to put it together. Inspiring Awesome fantastic.

Well done ASTRONOMY IS NOT TAUGHT HERE IN THE BAHAMAS ,SEND ME INFO ON DVD-REGARDING THE MOONS OF THE PLANETS IN DETAIL ,INCLUDING,CURRENT AND PAST EXPLORATIONS BY NASA. TEL;1-242-395-8962,FAX;1242-356-6135,PO BOX GEN DEL GPO,NASSAU,NP,BAHAMAS-LILLY-VALLEY#2. I THANK YOU. good info Shadow111Sonic333ftw @Haters Lol you all fail. Why don’t you stfu and quit crying? These people worked real hard on this. Stop going like wtf and stfu for us all. thanks for the facts Banana Bob This article is very helpful and i just wanted to thank the lord for making this beautiful planet called Saturn and all its moons 🙂 How Many Moons Does Saturn Have? - Universe Today Universe Today How Many Moons Does Saturn Have? Article Updated: 5 Sep , 2016 by Elizabeth Howell Saturn is well known for being a gas giant, and for its impressive ring system.

But would it surprise you to know that this planet also has the second-most moons in the Solar System, second only to Jupiter? Yes, Saturn has at least 150 moons and moonlets in total , though only 62 have confirmed orbits and only 53 have been given official names. Most of these moons are small, icy bodies that are little more than parts of its impressive ring system. In fact, 34 of the moons that have been named are less than 10 km in diameter while another 14 are 10 to 50 km in diameter. However, some of its inner and outer moons are among the largest and most dramatic in the Solar System, measuring between 250 and 5000 km in diameter and housing some of greatest mysteries in the Solar System. Saturn’s moons have such a variety of environments between them that you’d be forgiven for wanting to spend an entire mission just looking at its satellites. From the orange and hazy Titan to the icy plumes emanating from Enceladus, studying Saturn’s system gives us plenty of things to think about. Not only that, the moon discoveries keep on coming.

As of April 2014, there are 62 known satellites of Saturn (excluding its spectacular rings, of course). Fifty-three of those worlds are named. The Cassini spacecraft observes three of Saturn’s moons set against the darkened night side of the planet. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Discovery and Naming: Prior to the invention of telescopic photography, eight of Saturn’s moons were observed using simple telescopes. The first to be discovered was Titan , Saturn’s largest moon, which was observed by Christiaan Huygens in 1655 using a telescope of his own design. Between 1671 and 1684, Giovanni Domenico Cassini discovered the moons of Tethys , Dione , Rhea and Iapetus – which he collectively named the “Sider Lodoicea” (Latin for “Louisian Stars”, after King Louis XIV of France). n 1789, William Herschel discovered Mimas and Enceladus , while father-and-son astronomers W.C Bond and G.P. Bond discovered Hyperion in 1848 – which was independently discovered by William Lassell that same year.

By the end of the 19th century, the invention of long-exposure photographic plates allowed for the discovery of more moons – the first of which Phoebe , observed in 1899 by W.H. Pickering. In 1966, the tenth satellite of Saturn was discovered by French astronomer Audouin Dollfus, which was later named Janus . A few years later, it was realized that his observations could only be explained if another satellite had been present with an orbit similar to that of Janus. This eleventh moon was later named Epimetheus , which shares the same orbit with Janus and is the only known co-orbital in the Solar System. Collage of Saturn and its largest moons. Credit: NASA/JPL/SSI By 1980, three additional moons were discovered and later confirmed by the Voyager probes. They were the trojan moons (see below) of Helene (which orbits Dione) as well as Telesto and Calypso (which orbit Tethys). The study of the outer planets has since been revolutionized by the use of unmanned space probes.

This began with the arrival of the Voyager spacecraft to the Cronian system in 1980-81, which resulted in the discovery of three additional moons – Atlas , Prometheus , and Pandora – bringing the total to 17. By 1990, archived images also revealed the existence of Pan . This was followed by the Cassini-Huygens mission, which arrived at Saturn in the summer of 2004. Initially, Cassini discovered three small inner moons, including Methone and Pallene between Mimas and Enceladus, as well as the second Lagrangian moon of Dione – Polydeuces . In November of 2004, Cassini scientists announced that several more moons must be orbiting within Saturn’s rings. From this data, multiple moonlets and the moons of Daphnis and Anthe have been confirmed. The study of Saturn’s moons has also been aided by the introduction of digital charge-coupled devices, which replaced photographic plates by the end of the 20th century. Because of this, ground-based telescopes have begun to discovered several new irregular moons around Saturn.

In 2000, three medium-sized telescopes found thirteen new moons with eccentric orbits that were of considerable distance from the planet. The moons of Saturn, from left to right: Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea; Titan in the background; Iapetus (top) and Hyperion (bottom). Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute In 2005, astronomers using the Mauna Kea Observatory announced the discovery of twelve more small outer moons. In 2006, astronomers using Japan’s Subaru Telescope at Mauna Kea reported the discovery of nine more irregular moons. In April of 2007, Tarqeq (S/2007 S 1) was announced, and in May of that same year, S/2007 S 2 and S/2007 S 3 were reported. The modern names of Saturn’s moons were suggested by John Herschel (William Herschel’s son) in 1847.

In keeping with the nomenclature of the other planets, he proposed they be named after mythological figures associated with the Roman god of agriculture and harvest – Saturn, the equivalent of the Greek Cronus. In particular, the seven known satellites were named after Titans, Titanesses and Giants – the brothers and sisters of Cronus. In 1848, Lassell proposed that the eighth satellite of Saturn be named Hyperion after another Titan. When in the 20th century, the names of Titans were exhausted, the moons were named after different characters of the Greco-Roman mythology, or giants from other mythologies. All the irregular moons (except Phoebe) are named after Inuit and Gallic gods and Norse ice giants. Saturn’s Inner Large Moons: Saturn’s moons are grouped based on their size, orbits, and proximity to Saturn. The innermost moons and regular moons all have small orbital inclinations and eccentricities and prograde orbits. Meanwhile, the irregular moons in the outermost regions have orbital radii of millions of kilometers, orbital periods lasting several years, and move in retrograde orbits. Saturn’s moon of Enceladus.

Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Saturn’s Inner Large Moons, which orbit within the E Ring (see below), include the larger satellites Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, and Dione. These moons are all composed primarily of water ice, and are believed to be differentiated into a rocky core and an icy mantle and crust. With a diameter of 396 km and a mass of 0.4×1020 kg, Mimas is the smallest and least massive of these moons. It is ovoid in shape and orbits Saturn at a distance of 185,539 km with an orbital period of 0.9 days. Some people jokingly call Mimas the “Death Star” moon because of the crater in its surface that resembles the machine from the Star Wars universe. The 140 km (88 mi) Herschel Crater is about a third the diameter of the moon itself, and could have created fractures (chasmata) on the moon’s opposing side. There are in fact craters throughout the moon’s small surface, making it among the most pockmarked in the Solar System.

Enceladus, meanwhile, has a diameter of 504 km, a mass of 1.1×1020 km and is spherical in shape. It orbits Saturn at a distance of 237,948 km and takes 1.4 days to complete a single orbit. Though it is one of the smaller spherical moons, it is the only Cronian moon that is endogenously active – and one of the smallest known bodies in the Solar System that is geologically active. This results in features like the famous “ tiger stripes ” – a series of continuous, ridged, slightly curved and roughly parallel faults within the moon’s southern polar latitudes. Large geysers have also been observed in the southern polar region that periodically release plumes of water ice, gas and dust which replenish Saturn’s E ring. These jets are one of several indications that Enceladus has liquid water beneath it’s icy crust, where geothermal processes release enough heat to maintain a warm water ocean closer to its core. Dione’s trailing hemisphere, showing the patches of “whispy terrain”.

Credit: NASA/JPL The moon has at least five different kinds of terrain, a “young” geological surface of less than 100 million years. With a geometrical albedo of more than 140%, which is due to it being composed largely of water ice, Enceladus is one of the brightest known objects in the Solar System. At 1066 km in diameter, Tethys is the second-largest of Saturn’s inner moons and the 16th-largest moon in the Solar System. The majority of its surface is made up of heavily cratered and hilly terrain and a smaller and smoother plains region. Its most prominent features are the large impact crater of Odysseus , which measures 400 km in diameter, and a vast canyon system named Ithaca Chasma – which is concentric with Odysseus and measures 100 km wide, 3 to 5 km deep and 2,000 km long. With a diameter and mass of 1,123 km and 11×1020 kg, Dione is the largest inner moon of Saturn.

The majority of Dione’s surface is heavily cratered old terrain, with craters that measure up to 250 km in diameter . However, the moon is also covered with an extensive network of troughs and lineaments which indicate that in the past it had global tectonic activity. It’s covered in canyons, cracking and craters and is coated from dust in the E-ring that originally came from Enceladus. The location of this dust has led astronomers to theorize that the moon was spun about 180 degrees from its original disposition in the past, perhaps due to a large impact. Saturn’s Large Outer Moons: The Large Outer Moons, which orbit outside of the Saturn’s E Ring, are similar in composition to the Inner Moons – i.e. composed primarily of water ice and rock. Of these, Rhea is the second largest – measuring 1,527 km in diameter and 23×1020 kg in mass – and the ninth largest moon of the Solar System. With an orbital radius of 527,108 km, it is the fifth-most distant of the larger moons, and takes 4.5 days to complete an orbit.

Views of Saturn’s moon Rhea. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Like other Cronian satellites, Rhea has a rather heavily cratered surface, and a few large fractures on its trailing hemisphere. Rhea also has two very large impact basins on its anti-Saturnian hemisphere – the Tirawa crater (similar to Odysseus on Tethys) and an as-yet unnamed crater – that measure 400 and 500 km across, respectively. Rhea has at least two major sections, the first being bright craters with craters larger than 40 km (25 miles), and a second section with smaller craters. The difference in these features are believed to be evidence of a major resurfacing event at some time in Rhea’s past. At 5150 km in diameter, and 1,350×1020 kg in mass, Titan is Saturn’s largest moon and comprises more than 96% of the mass in orbit around the planet. Titan is also the only large moon to have its own atmosphere, which is cold, dense, and composed primarily of nitrogen with a small fraction of methane.

Scientists have also noted the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the upper atmosphere, as well as methane ice crystals . The surface of Titan, which is difficult to observe due to persistent atmospheric haze, shows only a few impact craters, evidence of cryovolcanoes , and longitudinal dune fields that were apparently shaped by tidal winds. Titan is also the only body in the Solar System beside Earth with bodies of liquid on its surface, in the form of methane–ethane lakes in Titan’s north and south polar regions. Image of Titan’s taken by the Cassini spacecraft, showing light passing through the periphery of the moon’s atmosphere. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute Titan is also distinguished for being the only Cronian moon that has ever had a probe land on it. This was the Huygens lander, which was carried to the hazy world by the Cassini spacecraft. Titan’s “Earth-like processes” and thick atmosphere are among the things that make this world stand out to scientists, which include its ethane and methane rains from the atmsophere and flows on the surface.

With an orbital distance of 1,221,870 km, it is the second-farthest large moon from Saturn, and completes a single orbit every 16 days. Like Europa and Ganymede, it is believed that Titan has a subsurface ocean made of water mixed with ammonia, which can erupt to the surface of the moon and lead to cryovolcanism. Hyperion is Titan’s immediate neighbor. At an average diameter of about 270 km, it is smaller and lighter than Mimas. It is also irregularly shaped and quite odd in composition. Essentially, the moon is an ovoid, tan-colored body with an extremely porous surface (which resembles a sponge). The surface of Hyperion is covered with numerous impact craters, most of which are 2 to 10 km in diameter. It also has a highly unpredictable rotation, with no well-defined poles or equator. At 1,470 km in diameter and 18×1020 kg in mass, Iapetus is the third-largest of Saturn’s large moons.

And at a distance of 3,560,820 km from Saturn, it is the most distant of the large moons, and takes 79 days to complete a single orbit. Due to its unusual color and composition – its leading hemisphere is dark and black whereas its trailing hemisphere is much brighter – it is often called the “yin and yang” of Saturn’s moons. The two sides of Iapetus, Saturn’s “yin-yang moon”. Credit: NASA/JPL Saturn’s Irregular Moons: Beyond these larger moons are Saturn’s Irregular Moons. These satellites are small, have large-radii, are inclined, have mostly retrograde orbits, and are believed to have been acquired by Saturn’s gravity. These moons are made up of three basic groups – the Inuit Group, the Gallic Group, and the Norse Group. The Inuit Group consists of five irregular moons that are all named from Inuit mythology – Ijiraq, Kiviuq, Paaliaq, Siarnaq, and Tarqeq. All have prograde orbits that range from 11.1 to 17.9 million km, and from 7 to 40 km in diameter.

They are all similar in appearance (reddish in hue) and have orbital inclinations of between 45 and 50°. The Gallic group are a group of four prograde outer moons named for characters in Gallic mythology -Albiorix, Bebhionn, Erriapus, and Tarvos. Here too, the moons are similar in appearance and have orbits that range from 16 to 19 million km. Their inclinations are in the 35°-40° range, their eccentricities around 0.53, and they range in size from 6 to 32 km. Last, there is the Norse group, which consists of 29 retrograde outer moons that take their names from Norse mythology. These satellites range in size from 6 to 18 km, their distances from 12 and 24 million km, their inclinations between 136° and 175°, and their eccentricities between 0.13 and 0.77. This group is also sometimes referred to as the Phoebe group, due to the presence of a single larger moon in the group – which measures 240 km in diameter.

The second largest, Ymir , measures 18 km across. Saturn’s rings and moons Credit: NASA Within the Inner and Outer Large Moons, there are also those belonging to Alkyonide group. These moons – Methone, Anthe, and Pallene – are named after the Alkyonides of Greek mythology, are located between the orbits of Mimas and Enceladus, and are among the smallest moons around Saturn. Some of the larger moons even have moons of their own, which are known as Trojan moons. For instance, Tethys has two trojans – Telesto and Calypso, while Dione has Helene and Polydeuces . Moon Formation: It is thought that Saturn’s moon of Titan, its mid-sized moons and rings developed in a way that is closer to the Galilean moons of Jupiter. In short, this would mean that the regular moons formed from a circumplanetary disc, a ring of accreting gas and solid debris similar to a protoplanetary disc. Meanwhile, the outer, irregular moons are believed to have been objects that were captured by Saturn’s gravity and remained in distant orbits. However, there are some variations on this theory.

In one alternative scenario, two Titan-sized moons were formed from an accretion disc around Saturn; the second one eventually breaking up to produce the rings and inner mid-sized moons. In another, two large moons fused together to form Titan, and the collision scattered icy debris that formed to create the mid-sized moons. However, the mechanics of how the moon’s formed remains a mystery for the time being. With additional missions mounted to study the atmospheres, compositions and surfaces of these moons, we may begin to understand where they truly came from. Much like Jupiter, and all the other gas giants, Saturn’s system of satellites is extensive as it is impressive. In addition to the larger moons that are believed to have formed from a massive debris field that once orbited it, it also has countless smaller satellites that were captured by its gravitational field over the course of billions of years. One can only imagine how many more remain to be found orbiting the ringed giant. We have many great articles on Saturn and its moon’s here at Universe Today. For example, here’s How Many Moons Does Saturn Have? and Is Saturn Making a New Moon?

Here’s an article about the discovery of Saturn’s 60th moon , and another article about how Saturn’s moons could be creating new rings . Want more information about Saturn’s moons? Check out NASA’s Cassini information on the moons of Saturn, and more from NASA’s Solar System Exploration site. We have recorded two episodes of Astronomy Cast just about Saturn. The first is Episode 59: Saturn , and the second is Episode 61: Saturn’s Moons . Sources: Saturn Moons and Rings - Windows to the Universe Saturn's Moons and Rings The gas giant planet Saturn has a large group of moons. It also has the largest, most complex, and best-known ring system in our Solar System. Saturn's moon Titan is one of the few moons in the Solar System with much of an atmosphere. It is also one of the largest moons in the Solar System. Some of Saturn's moons are odd. A giant crater on Mimas makes it look like the "Death Star" from the Star Wars movies. Iapetus is quite dark on one side and very bright on the other. Hyperion is shaped like a garbage can.

Prometheus and Pandora are called the "shepherd moons" because they herd particles into Saturn's "F ring" . Phoebe is very dark and moves in a strange orbit. It may be an asteroid or Kuiper Belt Object that Saturn's strong gravity captured long ago. The other medium-sized moons of Saturn are Rhea , Dione , Tethys , Enceladus , Janus and Epimetheus . Some of Saturn's moons are icy moons . Most of the others are small moons which are basically large rocks in space. Some stories from old myths include characters that some of Saturn's moons were named after. The two tables below list all of Saturn's know moons. One table lists them in order of size (largest to smallest). The other table linsts them in order of their distance from Saturn (closest to furthest). The Moons of Saturn Cassini: Mission to Saturn: Moons Magnetosphere Moons This stunning false-color view of Saturn's moon Hyperion reveals crisp details across the strange, tumbling moon's surface. Differences in color could represent differences in the composition of surface materials. The view was obtained during Cassini's close flyby on Sept. 26, 2005.

Overview: The Voyager and Pioneer flybys of the 1970s and 1980s provided rough sketches of Saturn’s moons. But during its many years in Saturn orbit, Cassini discovered previously unknown moons, solved mysteries about known ones, studied their interactions with the rings and revealed how sharply different the moons are from one another. Key Points ♦ Saturn’s dozens of moons range in size from larger than planet Mercury down to about the size of a sports arena. Key Points ♦ Cassini found water continually spewing out of jets around the south polar region of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, and scientists concluded that its subsurface ocean has all the ingredients for life – liquid water, heat, and food (methane). Key Points ♦ Among Saturn’s natural satellites, Cassini found the only known world aside from Earth’s moon to have a statically charged surface (Hyperion). Key Points ♦ Saturn’s moons contribute material to Saturn’s rings and magnetosphere, but the moons also collect material from Saturn’s rings and magnetosphere. Saturn’s moons range in size from smaller than a football stadium to larger than the planet Mercury, and they vary in color, texture and composition.

While the larger moons are spherical, others are shaped like a sweet potato (Prometheus), a regular potato (Pandora), a meatball (Janus), and even a sponge (Hyperion). Some have a gnarled, irregular shape and texture like a dirty ice-ball (Epimetheus). One object observed in the rings (and unofficially called Peggy) may be a moon forming or disintegrating, or it might not truly be a moon at all. Four spacecraft have visited the Saturn system, but only Cassini has orbited the ringed planet. Doing so has bought Cassini time -- more than a decade -- to linger and watch Saturn’s exotic zoo of 60-plus moons like no spacecraft has before. Cassini has looked, listened, sniffed and even tasted Saturn’s moons, and what it has learned about them is nothing less than extraordinary. Habitability Outside the Habitability Zone Haze-enshrouded Titan is Saturn’s largest moon and the solar system’s second-largest, and an all-around exceptional place. Titan is the only known world other than Earth where any sort of liquid collects on its surface.

Earth has liquid water oceans because it orbits within the solar system’s habitable zone, the range of distance from our sun that is neither so hot that oceans boil away nor so cold that they’re frozen. The Saturn system is far outside of the habitable zone, and Titan’s surface temperature is so cold that the moon’s surface is largely water ice instead of rock. But the temperature is just right for liquid methane and ethane. Cassini scientists found not only that liquid methane and ethane exist on Titan, but that they rain from the sky and fill liquid lakes, which are as wide as several hundred miles (or kilometers) and as deep as hundreds of feet (or meters). Despite Titan’s distance from the sun, Cassini has also found evidence of a global (or at least regional) liquid water ocean below its frigid surface, but Titan isn’t the only Saturnian moon that boasts of a subsurface sea. Read more on Titan . Cassini scientists were astonished when they found a plume spraying water vapor, icy particles and simple organic materials into space from the south polar region of Enceladus. Scientists determined that the jets are the source of material for Saturn’s E-Ring.

The jets spew out of great fissures, or cracks, known as “tiger stripes,” which Cassini scientists found grow wider or narrower depending on where Enceladus is in its orbit around Saturn. Observations of its gravity and the contents of the plume suggested that Enceladus almost certainly contains a subsurface liquid water ocean near its southern polar region. Now more and more Cassini data indicates that Enceladus is home to a global (not just regional) ocean, and the jets near the south polar region are powered by hotspots, where heat from the interior ocean is escaping. On Earth, hydrothermal vents at the ocean floor can produce habitats where organisms can flourish, completely cut off from sunlight. Many scientists suspect that life on Earth might have begun around these undersea environments. The evidence is beginning to pile up that Enceladus might have hydrothermal vents too. But vents or no vents, the Cassini mission has shown that Enceladus appears to have all the components necessary for life. The food component is methane, which has been observed in surprising abundance in the plume, said Bonnie Buratti, a senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

“Water, food, and heat — everything is there for life as we know it,” she said. “It’s all there.” Read more on Enceladus . Even if Enceladus isn’t home to even simple organisms, the presence of the necessary conditions is itself a remarkable finding. Moon Mysteries Managed Enceladus and Titan get a lot of attention, but the Cassini mission has also provided countless insights about dozens of Saturn’s other moons. The moon Mimas, whose Herschel Crater makes it look like the Death Star from "Star Wars," was thought to be an old, dead world, according to Cassini project scientist Linda Spilker. But Cassini scientists found evidence that it too may have a subsurface ocean, or at least a football-shaped water-ice core. “It’s curious. Mimas and Enceladus are the same size,” Spilker said, but Enceladus has water jets while Mimas appears not to. The reason for their differences is unknown. Cassini also found thin atmospheres around the moons Dione and Rhea -- but we’re talking thin, around 5 trillion times less dense than at Earth’s surface.

Hyperion can’t boast any sort of atmosphere, but the tumbling, sponge-looking moon does build up a static charge, which scientists realized when Cassini passed through a beam of electrons coming up from the moon’s surface. Hyperion is the only object in the solar system other than Earth’s moon that’s been confirmed as having a charged surface. the first high-resolution glimpse of the bright trailing hemisphere of Saturn's moon Iapetus. Cassini also solved the centuries-old puzzle about why the moon Iapetus has one snow-white hemisphere while its other hemisphere is nearly as dark as charcoal. Iapetus is tidally locked, so it always shows the same side to Saturn, and one side always faces the direction in which it’s orbiting. It turns out that dark material falls on Iapetus’s leading side. “It’s coming actually from [the outer moon] Phoebe’s ring — it’s Phoebe dust,” Spilker said. The moon Phoebe creates one of Saturn’s rings, and Iapetus is flying through its debris. “Headed forward, you get all the bug splats,” Spilker said.

At the same time, ice migrates to the poles, not by sliding but by sort of hopping, a molecule at a time. On the moon Tethys, Cassini observed mysterious red arcs, though they weren’t easy to see. “We didn’t even see them until a Cassini scientist started looking in the near-infrared,” Spilker said. In the infrared, the red arcs are obvious, as if someone dragged a giant red crayon across the surface of a golf ball. The arcs don’t appear to be related to any physical features of the moon’s surface, such as valleys or fractures. “They go up mountains and down into craters,” Spilker said. “But there’s no obvious fractures.” If the red arcs are coming from fractures, they’re too small to see at the resolution Cassini’s instruments provide. The arcs are also unevenly distributed on the moon’s surface. “It’s only the north,” Spilker said. “Why aren’t they in the south? It’s just sort of a late-mission mystery.” As scientists continue to analyze Cassini’s data, they will likely solve more mysteries about Saturn’s menagerie of moons, and they will almost certainly find more mysteries that need solving.

The Cassini spacecraft looks toward Saturn's tiny moon Aegaeon within the G-ring arc. The moonlet Aegaeon can't be seen in this image, but it orbits in the bright arc of Saturn's faint G ring shown here. Saturn's Moons - Astronomy Games For Kids - KidsAstronomy.com Try Miamiopia, Our New Free Educational Virtual World The Moons of Saturn Of all the planets, Saturn reigns supreme, well at least in the moon department. That is because Saturn has more moons than any other planet, 62 currently, and counting. Of these 62 moons, 53 are classified officially as moons, 9 are provisional (unofficial) moons. We'll talk about a few of the moons below. Although most of Saturn's moons are small, a few such as Titan are very large. Many of Saturn's moons orbit around the edge of the planet's rings. They help to keep the rings in place, just as a shepherd keeps sheep in place. For this reason we call these moons Shepherd Moons. Pan Pan is the closest known moon to Saturn's surface. It was discovered by Mark R. Showalter in 1990, by looking at pictures sent back from Voyager.

Because Pan is very small and so far away, there is not much we know about it. This moon was named after the god of woods, fields and flocks, having a human body and head, and goat legs, horns and ears. Atlas Atlas is the second of Saturn's moons. Discovered in 1980 by R. Terrile, it orbits Saturn just to the side of the A Ring. This makes Atlas a shepherd moon. Atlas was also known by the name Hercules in mythology. Prometheus Prometheus, which was discovered by S. Collins and others in 1980, is the inner shepherd satellite of Saturn's F ring. Prometheus was named after a man who stole fire from Olympus and gave it to humankind in Greek mythology. It is the third closest moon to the surface of Saturn. Pandora The outer shepherd moon of the F Ring is named Pandora. This small moon was discovered in 1980 by S. Collins. The name Pandora comes from Greek mythology. She was the first woman sent to Earth by Jupiter as a punishment for Prometheus' theft of fire. According to the story, Jupiter sent her to Earth with a box of all the problems and sicknesses of life.

She opened the box out of curiosity, releasing all these ills on humankind. Epimetheus Epimetheus is the fifth moon from Saturn's surface. It was discovered by Richard Walker first in 1966, and then again in 1977 by Stephen Larson and John Fountain. These three officially share the discovery. In 1966 Epimetheus was confused with Janus, another of Saturn's moons. Epimetheus and Janus are very interesting moons. They actually trade places with each other every 4 years. In Greek mythology Epimetheus was the husband of Pandora. Janus Janus was discovered by the French astronomer Audouin Dollfus in 1966. The name Janus comes from the Greek god of gates and doors. Janus is also the root of the name January. Mimas Mimas reveals a striking resemblance to the Death Star in the popular film Star Wars. It is for that reason nick named by astronomers "The Death Star." The large crater, which you can see, is named Herschel. It is so big compared to the size of Mimas, that whatever hit the moon probably just about tore it apart. Notice how round Mimas is.

This is because it is big enough that its gravity can pull the material into a globe. Many of Saturn's moons are too small to be pulled into a globe shape. Mimas was discovered in 1789 by William Herschel. This moon was named after one of the Titans slain by Hercules. Enceladus The eighth moon orbiting Saturn is Enceladus. In Greek mythology Enceladus was a Titan who was defeated in battle and buried under Mount Etna by Athena. Discovered in 1789 by William Herschel, Enceladus is the brightest object besides the Sun in the Solar System. Of course, on Earth we cannot see it at all without a telescope. This is because it is small and far away. The smooth surface of Enceladus tells scientists that it has recently been active. Scientists do not know for sure whether it is water, volcanic or other material that has erupted in the last 100 million years giving this moon such a smooth face. Tethys Tethys is like a giant ice cube in the sky. It is almost pure water ice. At one time long ago it was liquid.

It would have been a giant ocean with no land and no seabed. Or like a giant blob of water floating in the sky. In Greek mythology Tethys was a Titaness and sea goddess who was both sister and wife of Oceanus. This moon was discovered by Cassini in 1684. Telesto The tenth world orbiting Saturn is named Telesto. Telesto was discovered in 1980 by Smith, Reitsema, Larson and Fountain. Telesto is one of the smallest moons in the Solar System. In Greek mythology Telesto was a daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. Calypso Discovered by Pascu, Seidelmann, Baum and Currie in 1980, Calypso was named for a sea nymph who delayed Odysseus on her island for seven years. Like Telesto, Calypso is one of the smallest moons in the Solar System. Dione The twelfth moon from Saturn is named Dione. This world was discovered in 1684 by Cassini. Dione is the densest, or heaviest of Saturn's moons. Dione was the mother of Venus in Greek Mythology.

Helene Helene is the thirteenth of Saturn's moons. It was discovered by Lecacheux and Laques in 1980. Not much is known about this moon, although the Cassini Spacecraft recently flew close to Helene and took a great picture of its surface. Helene was an Amazon who fought with Achilles in Greek Mythology. Rhea Rhea is the second largest of Saturn's Moons. In Greek Mythology Rhea was the wife of Saturn and the mother of Neptune, Jupiter and Pluto. This world was discovered in 1672 by Cassini. Titan Discovered by Huygens in 1655, Titan is the largest moon orbiting Saturn, and the second largest moon in the Solar System. It is bigger in diameter than both the planets Mercury and Pluto and also larger than Earth's moon. It contains an atmosphere far thicker than even that of the Earth. Unfortunately scientists don't know very much about this world because they have not yet been able to penetrate its thick clouds to photograph its surface. Hyperion Saturn's Sixteenth moon was discovered by Bond and Lassell in 1848. Hyperion is the largest object in the Solar System that is not ball shaped.

Its size and shape tells scientists that it probably used to be part of a larger rounder moon which somehow broke apart. In Greek mythology Hyperion was the son of Earth and Uranus. Iapetus Iapetus, which was discovered by Cassini in 1671, is another world made up almost entirely of water ice. Most of Saturn's moons orbit the planet on the same plane, the plane of the planet's equator. This ice cube does not, however, follow the same path that Saturn's other moons follow. Instead, it orbits Saturn from top to bottom. In Greek mythology Iapetus was the son of Uranus. He was also an ancestor to the Human Race. Phoebe Phoebe is 4 times more distant from Saturn than Iapetus, its nearest neighbor. This small world was discovered by Pickering in 1898. Phoebe is much darker than most of the other moons of Saturn, and like Iapetus, it orbits Saturn nearly top to bottom instead of around its equator Both of these facts lead scientists to believe that phoebe is probably a captured asteroid or comet. In Greek mythology Phoebe is the daughter of Uranus and Earth.

New Moons The following moons have only recently been discovered. There is still only very little information about these worlds: S/2007 S2, S/2007 S3, S/2009 S1, Surtur, Aegaeon, Anthe, Tarqeq, Jarnsaxa, Greip, Skoll, Loge, Kari, Hati, Hyrrokkin, Fenrir, Farbauti, Bestla, and several others. Saturn's Moons: Facts About the Ringed Planet's Satellites Saturn's Moons: Facts About the Ringed Planet's Satellites By Nola Taylor Redd, Space.com Contributor | June 30, 2016 05:48pm ET MORE The comparitive sizes of some of Saturn's biggest moons are shown. Credit: NASA/JPL/David Seal At least 62 moons travel around Saturn. They come in a variety of sizes and compositions, from almost pure ice to rocky material, as well as a combination of both. Their journeys around the ringed planet range from half an Earth day to just over four Earth years.

One of Saturn's moons, Titan, makes up 96 percent of the mass orbiting the planet. Scientists think that Saturn's system may have originally housed two such moons, but the second broke up, creating the debris that formed the rings and smaller, inner moons. Another theory suggests that the system originally housed several large moons, similar to Jupiter's Galilean moons , but two fused into Titan. The violent collision could have scattered the debris that would have later drawn together into the smaller moons. The colorful globe of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, passes in front of the planet and its rings in this true color snapshot from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. The north polar hood can be seen on Titan (3,200 miles or 5,150 kilometers across) and appears as a detached layer at the top of the moon here. Image released Dec. 22, 2011. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute Some of the moons travel inside the gaps of the rings, clearing paths through the debris. Others orbit farther out. Several of the moons interact with one another, with their orbits moving in resonance with each other. Larger moons may trap smaller moons, keeping them nearby.

Sixteen of the moons are tidally locked, with one face permanently turned toward Saturn. The first moon was discovered in 1655. Over the next 200 years, the other seven major satellites were spotted. By 1997, astronomers on Earth had found 18 moons in orbit around the planet. The close orbit of NASA's Cassini mission , along with advances in technology for Earth-based telescopes, enabled the discovery of the rest. In 1847, British astronomer Sir John Herschel suggested that the moons of Saturn take their names from the Titans. The mythical siblings of the Greek god Cronus — Saturn to the Romans — the Titans battled the Olympian gods and lost. Once the names of the Titans were used, the moons began to be called after other characters from Roman and Greek mythology. Only 53 of Saturn's moons have names; the rest are identified by a numerical designation relating to their year of discovery. [ PHOTOS: The Rings and Moons of Saturn ] Let's look at the eight major moons of Saturn: Titan Titan is the largest of Saturn's moons and the first to be discovered. Titan is the only moon in the solar system known to have a significant atmosphere.

Nitrogen and methane extend around the moon 10 times as far into space as Earth's atmosphere, sometimes falling to the surface in the form of methane rain. This atmosphere makes it one of the best potential candidates for hosting life. Titan is larger than the planet Mercury , though not nearly as massive. It hosts many hydrocarbon-filled lakes as well as extremely tall mountains, with the largest one rising to nearly 11,000 feet . This moon is the only one to have a landing craft arrive on its surface, when the Cassini mission sent the Huygens lander there in 2005. Wispy terrain reflects sunlight brightly in the lower left of this Cassini image of the northern latitudes of Saturn's moon Dione. Image taken December 20, 2010. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Dione Dione is thought to be a dense rocky core surrounded by water-ice. The tidally locked moon is heavily cratered not on its leading side but on its back side. Astronomers think a collision could have spun the moon on its axis. The moon hosts a thin oxygen atmosphere and may have a liquid ocean beneath its surface .

Enceladus Enceladus contains more than 100 geysers at its south pole. Tidal heating causes portions of the icy planet to melt, spewing icy material into space from its "tiger stripes." The tiny bits of ice travel together to create Saturn's E ring. The satellite's icy surface makes it one of the brightest objects in the solar system. The moon has a subsurface ocean that may be friendly to life. Hyperion Hyperion was the last of the major satellites to be discovered. Hyperion is a small moon with an irregular appearance. The flattened object resembles an elongated potato rather than a sphere, a form that may have been created when an impact demolished a larger moon long ago. Hyperion has a spongy shape, possibly due to its low density and porous surface. Impacts seem to be absorbed by the moon, and most of the ejecta is thrown into space. The equatorial ridge of Iapetus can reach heights of up to 12 miles (20 km). This image reveals mountains only about half that height. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Iapetus Iapetus features light and dark contrasts on its surface, giving the moon a yin-yang shape.

Dark hydrocarbons falling to the moon long ago, perhaps from the nearby moon Phoebe, may have had more time to absorb more heat, gradually growing and spreading over time. Iapetus has a walnut-like shape, with its center bulging outward, and a ridge running around its equator. The moon also contains some of the highest mountains in the solar system, which may have been material from another moon . Scientists are studying ice movements (such as landslides) to do comparative work with these types of features on Earth. Mimas Mimas has a gaping crater that gives the rocky moon a strong resemblance to fictional Death Star in the "Star Wars" movies. The impact stands out despite the fact that Mimas is one of the most heavily cratered bodies in the solar system, with overlapping impacts covering the surface. The smallest and closest orbiting of Saturn's major moons, Mimas cleared the gap known as the Cassini division between two of the planet's rings. Mimas is made up primarily of water-ice, but despite its proximity to the planet (and the resulting tidal heating that should occur), the surface of the moon remains unchanged; none of the ice seems to be melting, though such melting occurs on other, more distant moons.

It is possible that there is a liquid ocean beneath its surface , although scientists say that an oval-shaped core could also explain some of Mimas' libration movements. This raw image of Saturn's icy moon Rhea was taken on March 10, 2013 by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, and received on Earth March 10, 2013. The camera was pointing toward Rhea at approximately 174,181 miles (280,317 kilometers) away. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute Rhea Rhea is a heavily cratered moon and lacks a core at its center. Instead, the entire body is composed of ice, with traces of rock mixed in, causing it to resemble a dirty snowball. The second largest of the planet's major moons, Rhea is still rather small, about half the size of Earth's moon. The satellite contains a faint oxygen atmosphere, about 5 trillion times less dense than the one found on Earth, but the only known oxygen atmosphere in the solar system. Radiation from Saturn's magnetosphere could release oxygen and carbon dioxide from the icy surface.

Tethys Tethys travels close to Saturn and feels the gravitational pull of the planet. The heat from Saturn may allow the moon's icy surface to melt slightly, filling in craters and other signs of impact. Made up almost entirely of water ice, the surface is highly reflective. A large trench crosses the moon, running diagonally from its north to south pole and spanning three-quarters of the satellite's circumference. A large crater on the other side of the moon covers nearly two-fifth of the moon's diameter and is nearly the size of Mimas. Scientists have found strange red arcs on the moon and are still struggling to explain how the arcs got there. The minor moons The smaller named moons of Saturn are as follows: 9. Erriapus

Question: What is the name of the largest moon of Saturn?
Answer: Titan